I met Doris a bit over a year ago and was immediately taken by her charm and generosity. A born and bred farm girl, clean through to the bone. A bit on the plump side, her loose limbs would sometimes fly wide from her body as she hustled from task to task on her farm, her purposeful stride giving a certain come hither sway to her hips. Her mouth is slightly narrow with lips perpetually pursed. Her full firm breasts were of the sort that excites the appetite of growing boys at the dinner table. During breaks between her various tasks around her farm she has a habit of preening – she IS, after all, a girl. It matters little if she is the sort that poses by the patio pool or plunges into the pasture pond, a girl is still a girl.

Not just a striking figure, Doris is a disciple of the small independent family farm and possesses a soaring knowledge of diet and nutrition. And when she got started on the subject of duck eggs there was no stopping her.

Ewww. Yuck. Duck eggs.

Not so fast there, Pilgrim, said Doris. We’re not talking about balut here. We’re talking about an egg with a major nutrition and flavor advantage over both commercially produced and organic free-range chicken eggs. I was caught. I just had to get comfortable and let her impromptu lesson take flight:

The first difference you will notice, says Doris, between commercially farmed and free-range eggs is the color and texture of the yoke. Yokes from free-range eggs are thick and have a bright yellow to orange color and are rich in antioxidants. In contrast, waste products in the grains used in commercial farming result in a watery pale yellow yoke with a much lower antioxidant content. How’s that for yuck?

The list of nutritional advantage of free-range over commercial eggs is extensive.

Then consider the fact that duck eggs are nutritionally superior in almost all categories to even organic, free-range chicken eggs– providing nearly three times more iron and Omega-3. Duck eggs are nutritional superstars — true winners. There are few, if any, commercial producers of duck eggs, which means, if you can find duck eggs they are in all likelihood organic free-range. Duck eggs are, in my opinion, a super food available almost exclusively at your local farm stand.

Concerned about cholesterol? Cholesterol only comes from meat. As a rule of thumb every ounce of meat you consume contains 25 milligrams of cholesterol. Red meat, chicken and fish, organ meat, shell fish, and dairy products (full fat) are all significant sources of dietary cholesterol.
Blood cholesterol – the cholesterol your doctor wags his finger at — is produced in the liver and triggered by consumption of saturated fats and transfats. Dietary cholesterol (consumed cholesterol) has very little effect on blood cholesterol levels. The natural way to manage cholesterol is to limit your intake of saturated fats and transfats. Omega 3 is highly unsaturated fat. Omega 3 is also a natural anti-inflammatory. How’s that arthritis doing anyway? If you’re concerned about cholesterol, that porterhouse, not the egg, is you enemy.

“Well,” I asked, “If duck eggs are so awesome, why aren’t they more readily available?”

There are a number of reasons duck eggs fell out of favor after WWII, including the slow decline of the small independent family farm and victory gardens. My favorite, though, is ducks can be an unruly mob with the personalities of sugared-up teenagers. Rather than in a nest, like children and laundry, they are prone to dropping their eggs wherever the mood and convenience strikes them. This creates a contest between the farmer and the fox as to who’s having eggs for breakfast. Perhaps that’s how the tradition of the Easter egg hunt got its start.

As always, use moderation in all things. Variety is the spice of life. Maintain a balanced diet for good health. Excessive consumption of any particular food item is unwise. Likewise avoiding a highly nutritious food item because it sounds icky, well, that just quacks me up.

I don’t think Doris took a single breath through the entire course of her impromptu lesson. Having sat through her lecture I felt duty-bound to at least try one of her sacred eggs. I now love duck eggs. I didn’t know I loved duck eggs until Doris laid down the gauntlet and I tried one last year. I now eat duck eggs on a regular basis when they are available.

I may regret sharing my current source but I get my duck eggs from the same place I get my maple syrup — The farmer in the dell, and a duck named Doris – on the corner of Old Kings Hwy and Hemlock Glen. Better get there early.

Disclaimer: This interview was intended for information only. It is neither dietary nor medical advice. For your particular genetic, metabolic, nutrition and health, issues and questions consult your doctor… unless your doctor is a quack.

Uncle Grumpus